Nelson Cardadeiro’s lightly
used ’89 GT convertible
by Tom Shaw | photography by Nelson Cardadeiro
I
t was December 1988, and recent college
grad Nelson Cardadeiro had just made
that big transition — finishing school
and landing his first real job. After
some time on that job, things were looking
good, so Nelson went shopping for a car. He
was a Mustanger from way back, but now
his vintage tastes were giving way to more
practical concerns. He needed something
dependable, maybe a little stylish, and fast
was always good.
Nelson demo’d an ’89 GT convertible
but wasn’t quite ready to pull the trigger.
However, the car made an impression on him,
and the job situation still looked good, so a
month later he returned to the dealer, ready
to sign the papers. But you know how dealers
are — they like to sell cars — and when
Nelson went back, expecting to drive home,
he did, but not in a new Mustang. He went
back home in his regular ride. The Mustang
he wanted was sold.
Well, you can pine and mope for what
might have been, but the time comes to just
move on. So Nelson was back to square one.
“I went searching for another black or
Cabernet Red GT five-speed convertible at
other dealers around the San Francisco Bay,”
he says.
But time was passing. The new model year
was at hand, and Nelson preferred the nearlysold-out ’89 over the ’90.